A Rose Is A Rose

No More are a band from Kiel, Germany, founded in the summer of 1979. Their music is rooted in early Post Punk / No Wave. No More began as a quartet with Andy A. Schwarz (vocals, guitar, bass), Tina Sanudakura (synthesizers), Christian Darc (drums, vocals) and Thomas Welz (bass, vocals). They self-­released their debut 7" four song EP "Too Late" in 1980. The EP was reviewed in the German ‘Sounds’ magazine as "strangely, archaic music, a brute sound that seems to be recorded with a purposely damaged 4­-track".

After the departure of Thomas Welz at the end of 1980, No More worked as a trio until the end of 1983. As a trio the band explored musical minimalism and experimented with sequencers, drum synthesizers and rhythm boxes. There were no studios involved in the recording process. All recordings were made in bunkers, laundry rooms, cellars and rehearsal rooms. In 1981 the band released their second single "Suicide Commando". The song spread internationally over the following years and became the band's biggest success. In 1982 No More released the mini­-album "A Rose Is A Rose” on 10”, described by NME as "made by a trio of young Germans who appear to have fallen out of Lou Reed ´s 'Berlin' album”. Songs on this mini­-LP convey the desolate and bleak attitude of German youth in the early 1980s. This reissue compiles all 8 tracks from the mini­-LP, both tracks from the “Suicide Commando” 7” plus 3 demos from 1982. As a bonus each LP includes the original “Too Late” 7” EP remastered and housed in an exact copy of the original jacket.

All songs have been remastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. The jacket is a replica of the original “A Rose Is A Rose” 10” artwork designed by Stefan Brose, resized for a 12” LP and laid out by Eloise Leigh. Each album includes an 11x14 double­sided, fold­out poster insert with photos and lyrics. As DJ duo Optimo said of “Suicide Commando”: “A song that refuses to die. A couple of years after these Germans recorded this it spread like a virus to become a cult classic. The virus is still spreading to this day.”